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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. capital — money
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — a match
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. capital — a city
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. court — of law
  16. court — of a king
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. game — wild animals
  20. bear — the animal
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com